Tajikistan
Tajikistan (Republic of Tajikistan) is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. The country is small in size (slightly smaller than Wisconsin) and is home to over 7.7 million people. Most of the population lives in the well irrigated Fergana Valley which also supports the country's agricultural economy that depends on wheat and cotton. The country has a wide range of temperatures mostly due to its mountains. The country has a long history of governmental mismanagement which has resulted in the country extreme poverty as the poorest country in Central Asia. Kajikistan has pressing environmental problems such as deforestation and inadequate sanitation facilities for its population. The country's capital and largest city is located at Dushanbe. History Tajikistan's history dates back to the Samanid Empire (A.D. 875-999), which ruled what is now Tajikistan as well as territory to the south and west. The Samanids supported the revival of the Persian language in the wake of the 8th century Arab Islamic conquest and played an important role in preserving the culture of the pre-Islamic Persian-speaking world. The Russian Empire took control of Tajikistan during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Russian rule collapsed briefly after the Russian Revolution of 1917, as the Bolsheviks consolidated their power and were embroiled in a civil war in other regions of the former Russian Empire. As the Bolsheviks attempted to regain Central Asia in the 1920s, an indigenous Central Asian resistance movement based in the Ferghana Valley (the "Basmachi movement") resisted but was largely eliminated by 1925. Tajikistan became fully established under Soviet control with the creation of Tajikistan as an autonomous Soviet socialist republic within Uzbekistan in 1924, and as an independent Soviet socialist republic in 1929. The northern Sughd region, previously part of the Uzbek republic, was added to the Tajik republic at this time. Tajikistan gained its independence on September 9, 1991 and soon fell into a civil war. From 1992 to 1997 internal fighting ensued between old-guard regionally based ruling elites, disenfranchised regions, democratic liberal reformists, and Islamists loosely organized in a United Tajik Opposition (UTO). A power-sharing peace accord was agreed upon and implemented by 2000. Once guaranteed 30% of government positions, former oppositionists have almost entirely been removed from government as President Rahmon has consolidated power. Geography Tajikistan is located between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to the north and west, China to the east, and Afghanistan to the south. Tajikistan is home to some of the highest mountains in the world, including the Pamir and Alay ranges. Ninety-three percent of Tajikistan is mountainous with altitudes ranging from 984 feet to 24,589 feet, with nearly 50% of Tajikistan's territory above 10,000 feet. Earthquakes of varying degrees are frequent. The massive mountain ranges are cut by hundreds of canyons and gorges; at the bottom of these run streams which flow into larger river valleys where the majority of the country's population lives and works. The principal rivers of Central Asia, the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya, both flow through Tajikistan, fed by melting snow and glaciers in the mountains of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. Flooding and landslides sometimes occur during the annual spring thaw. Politics Tajikistan's government is officially declared as a republic. The executive branch is headed by the chief of state (president); other brances are the legislative and judicial branches. Elections are held to determine the president and members of Parliament but the current president, Emomali Rahmon, has been in power since 1994. Rahmon has continuously manipualted elections and other government processes to favor himself and his followers. Certain freedoms such as press are officially guaranteed by the government but widespread oppresion exists. Economy Tajikistan is one of the poorest countries in the world. Revenue is dependent upon exports of cotton and aluminum, making the economy is highly vulnerable to external shocks. Despite this, Tajikistan managed modest growth during the height of the recent economic crisis, and growth picked up again in 2010 (6.5%) and 2011 (7.4%). Tajikistan has great hydropower potential and has focused on attracting investment for projects for internal use and electricity exports. Meanwhile, the country faces severe electricity shortages, particularly during the winter and beyond, when most of Tajikistan's inhabitants receive little or no electricity for weeks at a time. Tajikistan has followed a relatively strict fiscal and monetary policy, which has resulted in macroeconomic stability. However, government interference in the economy and massive corruption stifle economic growth and private investment. The government has attracted state-led investment for major infrastructure projects, particularly from China, rather than implementing the necessary economic reforms to attract private investors. Two-thirds of the workforce of Tajikistan is in agriculture, where wages are low and sometimes non-existent. Tajikistan struggles to implement agricultural reforms that would allow many farmers to grow the crop of their choice, rather than being forced to grow cotton, as has been the practice from Soviet times. Income from narcotics trafficking, while difficult to quantify, has an increasingly visible impact on the Tajik economy. Culture Tajiks are one of the most ancient peoples in the world. Archaeologists have dated settlements in the territory of today's Tajikistan date back to the end of the upper Paleolithic period, fifteen to twenty thousand years ago. The Tajiks have preserved many of the ancient traditions and customs of their ancestors. They have their own spoken language – a variety of Persian. Large families spanning several generations live together under one roof as the family and their farms and businesses reflect this prosperity and the welcome a guest receives reflects the legendary hospitality. The garments of Tajiks are mainly cotton-padded because of cold climate of the Pamir Plateau. Women wear bright-colored clothes and favor long skirts. When going outdoors, they wear kerchiefs, with older women wearing white and younger ones yellow or green. The men's caps look like small barrels, and are lined with black lamb skin. The lower brim is rolled up revealing the fur lining, which is both decorative and practical. They have an embroidered scarf around the waist called a rumol. Religion Tajikistan's official language is Islam with the majority practicing the Sunni school of thought and a minority practice Shiism. Other popular religions are Russian Orthodox, Christianity, and Judaism. The repeated blows of the Soviet policy makers on Islam could not diminish the zeal for religion in the region. In the early 1960s, the Khrushchev regime, and in the 1970s and 1980s, the Kremlin leadership inspired an anti-Islamic thought. Islam was related with backwardness and superstition. The religion, however, continued to flourish in Tujik society. Tourism The Museum of National Antiquities, Dushanbe The Museum of National Antiquities is the best in the country, focusing on the Greco-Bactrian sites of Takht-i-Sangin (including a small ivory image of Alexander the Great) and Kobadiyan, plus original Sogdian murals from Penjikent and a 6th-century scabbard and hilt in the shape of a griffin. The highlight is the 13m-long sleeping Buddha of Adjina-Tepe (Witches Hill), excavated in 1966. It dates from the Kushan era, 1500 years ago, and was recently revealed as the largest Buddha figure in Central Asia. Hoja Mumin Mountain, Kulyab The climate of Central Asia is now dry and does not allow for karst topography, but it still has some of the world's most interesting caves. An ancient tower karst is the Pamir Mountains, which includes 700 m high Hoja Mumin Mountain. The mountain consists almost entirely of salt, and has many caves with helictites and soda straws. In windy days, these caves can be found by the musical sound of the air passing though delicate cave formations. Food Festival, Dushanbe The Food Festival in Tajikistan, one of the p opular events in Tajikistan is a platform where the major international CIS companies exhibit the finest food items of the local producers and some new and dynamic facts about the developing Tajik market. This three day gala affair is attended by over 5,000 professional visitors from Central Asia, CIS and other foreign nations.